News Excerpt:
The World Bank, along with the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (Meity), is working on developing a state-level Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) adoption index that will help boost the digital economy and support financial inclusion.
What is Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI):
- DPI is a digital network that enables countries to safely and efficiently deliver economic opportunities and social services to all residents.
- It is a set of shared and interoperable digital systems built on open standards and specifications.
- DPI can be compared to roads, which form a physical network that connects people and provides access to a huge range of goods and services.
- It allows people to open bank accounts and receive wages faster and more easily.
- It also allows governments to support citizens more quickly and efficiently, especially during emergencies.
- It enables entrepreneurs to reach customers far and wide.
State-level DPI Index:
- The state-level DPI index will help analyse gaps to strengthen the digital economy, support financial inclusion, and increase public-private innovation.
- The Index would evaluate different states based on the level of adoption of DPIs.
- The main aim is to encourage states to increase the use of DPIs. It will be used by the Centre to identify the gaps in the current systems.
- The work will be done under the aegis and guidance of the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology.
India’s DPI:
- India's DPI, also known as India Stack, has been appreciated widely for improving financial inclusion and increasing formalisation in the economy.
- It consists of digital identity through Aadhaar, real-time payment through the UPI platform and other services like account aggregator.
- India's DPIs had led to the inclusion of half a billion people into the banking system and enabled the direct transfer of benefits to millions.
- Several foreign countries have also expressed interest in India's DPI.
- It was showcased to the world during India's presidency of G20 last year.
- Last year, the Centre signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with eight countries to offer them India Stack and DPI at no cost and with open-source access.
- These were Armenia, Sierra Leone, Suriname, Antigua, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Papua New Guinea, and Mauritius.
- A global coalition, led by the Centre, would take India’s DPI model to 50 countries in the next five years.
- This coalition included the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).